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#1
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On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 14:28:57 -0700, Keyboard In The Wilderness wrote:
I looked up my lighter circuit and it is 8 amps -- so 8 x 12 = 96 Watts -- at 50% or so efficiency -- should handle a 45 watt radio -- but that is pushing it to say nothing of stray noise that may be introduced and a possible voltage drop. Also the cigarette lighter may go thru the ignition switching. That was my thinking. As a note, I was just talking to a buddy of mine with an Excursion. His "lighter plug" is actually labeled "accessory plug" and had a 20A fuse in it from the factory. That tool replaced it with a 30A fuse so he could run his inverter rated at 25A. We won't discuss that call any further. Somehow on all my cars I find a grommet that lets me get thru the firewall without drilling. That's good to know. I'll have to poke around a bit more and see what I can find in my 2002 Impala. I did have real good luck this afternoon on my '97 Silverado 2500. The previous owner had already run 12g through the firewall, so I had a hole to work with. I rewired it primarily because I wasn't sure what he had done - it was a bit confusing. Anyway, on the Silverado there are two "taps" - basically large studs - along side of the fuse box. Each stud is hot and fused right in the box with a 30A fuse. I made up a couple of cables and ran these right into the cab using the existing hole. Found a good ground spot right on the firewall, so it's nice and short as well! Both cables are about 5' in length. Of course while these studs look stock (the fuse box cover actually is molded to fit right over them) they might not be, so if you happen to have a Silverado and don't see these studs don't blame me! I'm sure the Impala won't be quite as easy. -- John LeMay kc2kth Senior Technical Manager NJMC | http://www.njmc.com | Phone 732-557-4848 Specializing in Microsoft and Unix based solutions |
#2
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On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 18:13:44 -0400, John LeMay
wrote: On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 14:28:57 -0700, Keyboard In The Wilderness wrote: Somehow on all my cars I find a grommet that lets me get thru the firewall without drilling. That's good to know. I'll have to poke around a bit more and see what I can find in my 2002 Impala. I did have real good luck this afternoon on my '97 Silverado 2500. The previous owner had already run 12g through the firewall, so I had a hole to work with. I rewired it primarily because I wasn't sure what he had done - it was a bit confusing. Car stereo places and installers are sometimes a good resource for this sort of thing, as they need the same type of feedthrough. Happy trails, Gary (net.yogi.bear) ------------------------------------------------ at the 51st percentile of ursine intelligence Gary D. Schwartz, Needham, MA, USA Please reply to: garyDOTschwartzATpoboxDOTcom |
#3
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![]() Somehow on all my cars I find a grommet that lets me get thru the firewall without drilling. One choice I've resorted to on a number of installations in sedans is to locate where the major cable bundle on the driver's side firewall goes through. It is usually embedded in a very large rubber seal. I usually can take a sharp flat bladed screwdriver and poke a hold in this rubber, being careful not to hit the cables in the center bundle. Poking a #14 black and red wires through this new slot is not difficult and usually provides adequate power from the battery to most dash mounted radios and other equipment. Ed |
#4
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![]() Somehow on all my cars I find a grommet that lets me get thru the firewall without drilling. One choice I've resorted to on a number of installations in sedans is to locate where the major cable bundle on the driver's side firewall goes through. It is usually embedded in a very large rubber seal. I usually can take a sharp flat bladed screwdriver and poke a hold in this rubber, being careful not to hit the cables in the center bundle. Poking a #14 black and red wires through this new slot is not difficult and usually provides adequate power from the battery to most dash mounted radios and other equipment. Ed |
#5
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On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 23:20:22 +0000, Gary S. wrote:
Car stereo places and installers are sometimes a good resource for this sort of thing, as they need the same type of feedthrough. Well, just a follow up on this. I gave in and went to the local car stereo installer and had them do the job. While I was at it, I had them install a small (3") 12V fan for some extra air flow. I wanted to install the rig in an enclosed area in the console that was just wide enough for the rig, about 10" deep and about 8" high. This "pocket" was all plastic - including the back - however there was nothing behind the pocket under the dash. The installer cut a small hole for the fan and tied it so that if the car is on, so is the fan. It's pretty quiet most of the time as well. Anyhow, the fan moves about 22cf/m of air into this pocket and out the front right across the heat sink of the radio (the entire bottom of the rig on the Yaesu 8800). It keeps the rig nice and cool even in pretty heavy duty cycles at 20W or so. I haven't run the rig "wide open" for any length of time yet, but I'm willing to bet the rig would still stay pretty cool. Thanks for all the input. I'm much happier not having wires running around the cabin into the cigar lighter. Now that everything is wired, I have the lighter adapter to use in my wife's car when needed for those short trips. -- John LeMay kc2kth Senior Technical Manager NJMC | http://www.njmc.com | Phone 732-557-4848 Specializing in Microsoft and Unix based solutions |
#6
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On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 23:20:22 +0000, Gary S. wrote:
Car stereo places and installers are sometimes a good resource for this sort of thing, as they need the same type of feedthrough. Well, just a follow up on this. I gave in and went to the local car stereo installer and had them do the job. While I was at it, I had them install a small (3") 12V fan for some extra air flow. I wanted to install the rig in an enclosed area in the console that was just wide enough for the rig, about 10" deep and about 8" high. This "pocket" was all plastic - including the back - however there was nothing behind the pocket under the dash. The installer cut a small hole for the fan and tied it so that if the car is on, so is the fan. It's pretty quiet most of the time as well. Anyhow, the fan moves about 22cf/m of air into this pocket and out the front right across the heat sink of the radio (the entire bottom of the rig on the Yaesu 8800). It keeps the rig nice and cool even in pretty heavy duty cycles at 20W or so. I haven't run the rig "wide open" for any length of time yet, but I'm willing to bet the rig would still stay pretty cool. Thanks for all the input. I'm much happier not having wires running around the cabin into the cigar lighter. Now that everything is wired, I have the lighter adapter to use in my wife's car when needed for those short trips. -- John LeMay kc2kth Senior Technical Manager NJMC | http://www.njmc.com | Phone 732-557-4848 Specializing in Microsoft and Unix based solutions |
#7
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On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 18:13:44 -0400, John LeMay
wrote: On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 14:28:57 -0700, Keyboard In The Wilderness wrote: Somehow on all my cars I find a grommet that lets me get thru the firewall without drilling. That's good to know. I'll have to poke around a bit more and see what I can find in my 2002 Impala. I did have real good luck this afternoon on my '97 Silverado 2500. The previous owner had already run 12g through the firewall, so I had a hole to work with. I rewired it primarily because I wasn't sure what he had done - it was a bit confusing. Car stereo places and installers are sometimes a good resource for this sort of thing, as they need the same type of feedthrough. Happy trails, Gary (net.yogi.bear) ------------------------------------------------ at the 51st percentile of ursine intelligence Gary D. Schwartz, Needham, MA, USA Please reply to: garyDOTschwartzATpoboxDOTcom |
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